Sunday, October 30, 2005

Gym, shopping, and lies

Spent most of last week catching up on work and trying to get my sleep schedule to some normalacy. Yesterday I went to a gym here, and I am not as sore today as I thought I would be. Our company has a pretty good deal worked out with this fitness club... we get to do aerobics, use the weight room, and pool on Saturday mornings for only 10RMB (about $1.25). After going to the gym I had lunch with some co-workers and then went shopping for sunglasses since I lost mine the week before. The prices here for name brand sunglasses is higher than back in the States, but that might be because the demand is lower. Nearby the mall where the fitness club is there was a grand opening of a new store going on with fireworks, bands, dancers and martial arts demonstrations. They tend to do this a lot when a new place opens.

I have also heard that they're getting ready to celebrate the anniversary of the Korean conflict here, or as they call it... the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (or the War Against US Agression, for short). I am not sure if they are celebrating the end of the war or when China entered it. Of course, they do not teach the truth about the conflict... that it was communist North Korean aggression against South Korea, and that the US responded (along with 16 other UN nations) to help defend South Korea. It is kind of sad that so many people can be lied to about somethings for so long and so many believe. Luckily, with better access to information (such as through the internet) more and more people are able to discover the truth about things and do not have to depend on an education system or media that is controlled by a single party.